WHEATON, Ill. – Augustana was done in by a slow start and an equally sluggish finish in a 61-39 loss at Wheaton on Wednesday, February 6 in College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin women's basketball action. The Vikings trailed 11-2 after the first quarter and were outscored 19-8 in the fourth quarter.
 
Sandwiched in between those two periods Augustana was outscored by just two points (31-29) by the Thunder, who came into the game ranked 24^th in the latest NCAA Division III national ranking. The Thunder avenged an earlier win by the Vikings (56-51) back on January 16 in Rock Island.
 
This time around Wheaton zipped out to an 11-0 lead and was never headed. Only a layup by senior guard Izzy Anderson (Alleman Catholic HS, Rock Island, Ill.) in the final minute prevented the Vikings from being blanked.
 
An Anderson three pointer late in the second period cut the lead to nine (22-13) but the first half eventually ended with the home team on top 25-15.
 
At the start of the third quarter a three point field goal from junior Alexis Jones (Marist HS, Chicago, Ill.) and a basket by senior point guard Scooter Lopez (Mountain Vista HS, Highlands Ranch, Colo.) trimmed the margin to five (25-20) with 8:36 remaining. Wheaton scored nine of the game's next 11 points, however, and the lead ballooned back up to 12 (34-22) after a three point basket by Kristi Demski with 4:42 left.
 
When the third quarter ended the Wheaton lead was still in double digits at 11 (42-31).
 
Wheaton ended the game on a 13-4 run to account for the final score of 61-39.
 
Anderson led the Vikings in scoring with 15 points and Jones was also in double figures with 11. Junior Mia Lambert (Macomb HS, Macomb, Ill.) had seven points. Jones led the team in rebounding with seven and Lopez chipped in with six and also had three assists and a steal.
 
Hannah Frazier led Wheaton in scoring with 20 points and pulled down 10 rebounds and had four blocked shots. The Thunder won the rebounding battle with a margin of 41-29 and Wheaton blocked nine shots in the game.
 
Augustana falls to 12-11 overall and 6-8 in the CCIW while Wheaton moves to 19-4 and 13-1. The Vikings play Millikin at home on Saturday, February 9 with tip-off set for 5:00 p.m. It will be the final home game for seniors Anderson, Lopez, Clare Kramer (Prophetstown HS, Lyndon, Ill.), Sadie Roberts (United Township HS, East Moline, Ill.), Hannah Durbin (Springfield HS, Springfield, Ore.) and Carly McCameron (Antioch HS, Antioch, Ill.).